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Jul 19, 2007

"We generate our own environment. We get exactly what we deserve. How can we resent a life we've created ourselves? Who's to blame, who's to credit but us? Who can change it, anytime we wish, but us?" --Richard Bach

The New French Revolution

About a dozen people pedaled bicycles up the Champs-Elysees on Sunday as onlookers cheered. These were not the leading riders of the Tour de France racing toward the finish line, but American tourists testing this city’s new communal bike program. More than 10,600 of the hefty gray bicycles became available for modest rental prices on Sunday at 750 self-service docking stations that provide access in eight languages. The number is to grow to 20,600 by the end of the year. The program, Velib (for "velo," bicycle, and "libert," freedom), is the latest in a string of European efforts to reduce the number of cars in city centers and give people incentives to choose more eco-friendly modes of transport.